What kind of organs, anatomy or modifications are needed for my alpha creature to mind control its kin?

Question

I want to make a biological group of creatures where there is an absolute alpha creature that their lower kin cannot ever harm due to a mental prohibition. This would be equivalent to Asimov's first law of robotics - a lower kin may not harm their alpha or through inaction allow their alpha to come to harm, extended to also prevent them to do rebellion/revolution against their alpha even against this lower kin will.

The alpha cannot control their lower kin beyond this single restriction - they may not remote control the lower kin as a biological drone nor can they even give an order that must be obeyed beyond that restriction.

The concept is a bit similar to the powers of the dragon king in the second movie How to Train Your Dragon but more limited - there the Alpha could directly remote control other dragons like drone.

here a link to gif image to help imagine it better (imgur reject it)

https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/howtotrainyourdragon/images/7/79/The_force_of_an_Alpha.gif/revision/latest?cb=20200421122413

and Here is a description of the dragon controlling ability in the link, for ease of search.

Dragon Controlling

“ He who controls the Alpha, controls them all. [src] ” — Drago Bludvist The force of an Alpha

According to Dragons: Rise of Berk, Bewilderbeasts use their eyes and ultrasonic sounds to control dragons' minds. This was shown in the second movie, the Bewilderbeast's bony spines on its head were rapidly vibrating while the pupils on its eyes narrowed into slits, making it seem more likely, plausible, and believable that they are what broadcast the ultrasound.

• the creatures, both alphas and lower kin, have intelligence comparable to humans.

• the creatures are not insects, they are vertebrate and have a brain and not cold blood (I am not decided yet whether they should be warm blooded or both like dinosaurs, I forgot the correct english term for it)

• the lower kin creatures vary considerably - some favour/specialist in strength or size, some prefer speed, some prefer maneuverability or agility, some prefer cunning, etc, each with their own pro and cons due to that.

• the alpha is not necessary to be the biggest either, in fact there are many lower kin that are bigger than the alpha due to specialism build, but the alpha is more of a jack-of-all-trades build but still higher compare to the common one and just a bit bellow compare to the specialist build/stats.

• I do not want to use pheromones as the mechanism for this control so please do not provide this as an answer. Similarly, symbiotic or parasitic creatures such as fungi or worms are not acceptable. I want the mechanism to be part of the creature's organs (especially internal organs if possible).

• not just simply be based on psychology/society either, like ancient ancestor trauma or intimidation or instinct or tradition or base of simple cunning.

• I do not mind the ultrasonic sound method like the dragon king in the link, if it is scientifically or biologically possible, though I prefer no antenna for my creature, but I wonder how it would work with the lower kin organs to be able to be mind controlled.

• The mind control ability should not also affect another alpha, since I want the situation to be that only an alpha can fight against another alpha.

• the mind control cannot be based on sexual organs or gender.

Is there a scientific or biological way to achieve this?

feel free to correct my grammar or the tag to the appropriate one.

Answer 1

It won't require much

It doesn't need to be incredibly complex. All it requires is just a biological base for them. It can be an instinct, like a horse knowing to walk quickly after birth, a human knowing how to smile or ants taking care of their queen. This prevents them simply from attacking any perceived alpha.

If you want it to be an organ, a part of the brain will suffice. As an example, the visual cortex has some structures that are exceptional at recognising faces and their expression. This can be used to identify and protect the alpha.

You can make them dependent on the alpha, as if they are in love with it or a form thereof (protecting children for example). Possibly drug dependent on the alpha, as if they are drugged with endorphins and dopamines when they are doing things for the alpha. Or simply hardwired in their DNA without love or anything.

Answer 2

Unless it is based on charisma and leadership, as Trioxidane suggests, regardless of how it is done, it can never be a stable setup with intelligent organisms. They can project the potential advantage of nudging the top guy out of his niche. The result is, they will be on the lookout, pretty much all of their time, for an opportunity to subvert the system.

Especially when there are other intelligent critters around.

Example: Suppose it's based on smell. Beta dragon is pining for the perks of leadership. Meets up with a human who is not against the idea of spraying the boss dragon with some pheromone that gives him the "stink of loser." The other dragons refuse to go along with the decisions of a loser. So the old boss is toast. Now the beta guy can move up and reward his human conspirator.

You can easily write simple scenarios for any means of producing the subservience. With or without help from another species. Telepathy? Get the leader really drunk, his telepathy turns off, and he's toast. Color or markings that are deeply ingrained psychologically? Paint him with loser tones. Biggest tail feathers? Longest beard? Sharpest right little finger claw? Each of these is simple to defeat, especially if you can get non-local help.

Answer 3

Very, very limited subconscious telepathy acting on other dragons' self-preservation instincts.

Your alpha can't control other dragons, nor can it give them orders they can't obey, yet they seem to be able to do as they please with other dragons without being attacked, how is that? The alpha possesses a very limited telepathic ability, sending signals to other dragon's subconscious. These signals, while not nearly powerful enough to force other dragons to follow a command or take control over their bodies, act directly on their self-preservation instincts, essentially tricking them so that they perceive the act of harming the alpha as a threat to their own being, similar to how you'll subconsciously avoid the ledge of a high place. This isn't strong enough to make them see other animals harming the alpha as a threat as well, but it is enough so that their underlings avoid harming them like they'd avoid other reckless and life-threatening actions.

This could be explained by the presence of a special ganglia on their brains which act similarly to an organic version of our own electronic transmitters, transmitting signals to other dragons (might not need an antennae, but could be potentially amplified by the presence of modified horns, correct me if I'm wrong). This structure could've been originated from an ancestor dragon species capable of limited telepathic communication, which fell into misuse until it ended into a smaller, more atrophied structure whose function is defined by a recessive gene: dragons with the dominant gene have a leftover structure only capable of receiving signals, while the double recessive gene, one of the alpha's unique genetic traits, results into a structure only capable of sending signals subconsciously. For this very reason an alpha is the only one capable of harming another alpha, since they aren't capable of receiving one another's signals and thus aren't affected by each other's influence.

The only potential drawbacks of this system is that, similar to how humans are still capable of suicide, will completely ignore any self preservation instinct to save a loved one and have instances of brain damage, a suicidal dragon or whose self-preservation instincts are being strongly surpressed by something else, as well as a dragon whose receiving organ was somehow damaged (less likely but still possible depending on where it is placed on their heads) could potentially still be able to harm an alpha due to their signal being suppressed (though this might me more up to your own story, since we're talking about dragons after all).

While telepathy sounds outlandish, we're actually already on the initial phases of developing the necessary technology to make it viable, so it doesn't sound like too much of a stretch on what's scientifically possible.